An Oktoberfest alternative: Festbeer from Eppig Brewing

A photo of Festbier from Eppig BrewingFestbier from Eppig Brewing

Oct. 7, 2019 4 PM PT

A local beer to spend some time with this October.

Beer: Festbier

From: Eppig Brewing

Why: Paler and drier than a Märzen, the standard Oktoberfest beer, Festbier is a straw-colored, well-carbonated lager with a faint grassy aroma, lightly toasted malts, a bit of iron and snappy herbal hops. Light in body, Festbier is a great, but not showy, refreshment. This is the sort of beer that is content to be part of the party; it doesn’t need to be the party.

Geek Out: 6 percent alcohol by volume; 24 International Bittering Units.

Seek Out: Eppig beers are found in better-stocked bottle shops; the North Park brewery (3052 El Cajon Blvd., Ste. C), and its Shelter Island tasting room (2817 Dickens St.).

Peter Rowe

Peter joined The San Diego Union-Tribune in 1984. A native Californian who grew up in Encinitas, Rowe is a graduate of UC Berkeley and Northwestern University. He is past president of the National Society of Newspaper Columnists and a former Fulbright scholar. He has won a few journalism awards, but would trade them all for a chance to avenge his 1994 “Jeopardy!” loss. Married to a terrific woman who has saved him from errors in writing and in life, he has three sons. At the U-T, Rowe writes profiles and features and is even paid to review beers, which hardly seems fair.

An Oktoberfest alternative: Festbeer from Eppig Brewing

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